Alessandra Thiele, Deputy Director of the Austrian Film Museum, welcomed the art-loving audience. James Benning, along with the Film Museum’s Director Michael Loebenstein, sent a video message. William C. Eacho, former US Ambassador to Vienna, placed the American artist, photographer and author of the book, Dona Jalufka, in an international context, whilst Reinhard Golebiowski provided fascinating insights into the history of the museum and its collection of around 30 million objects.
Christian Köberl, former Director General of the NHM, hosted the afternoon’s proceedings, eventually leading into the Artist Talk: Publisher Lois Lammerhuber and Dona Jalufka discussed photography and art in general, and art and preserved specimens in particular. It was exciting, interesting and also educational, and of course the subsequent book signing and refreshments at the Film Museum bar were not to be missed.
